Amethyst

A/N: Thank you for all the interest in this story! I responded to as many reviews as I could- Thank you Anons!- so I hope you'll continue to support this story!

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Accusation

Asami was busy distracting herself with work when she was asked a very peculiar question by her factory workers. She stared at them in confusion for a moment until she saw the newspaper held in one of their hands. Frowning she folded her arms in disapproval.

"Please tell me you're not seriously believing the crap they write in the papers," she said. They glanced at each other uncertainly.

"I ain't believin' it. I was just askin'," the man with the paper said.

"Uh-huh." Asami wasn't convinced. She held out her hand, patiently waiting for him to hand over the paper. He did so reluctantly. Across the top announced the open trial for her father scheduled for later that afternoon. She ignored the pit in her stomach and looked down at the picture below Hiroshi Sato to see her and General Iroh talking pleasantly in the market. Beside it, she read the words "Possible Romance?" in bold lettering. She frowned. Didn't they have better things to do than follow every event in her life?

"The answer to your question is 'No'," Asami said to her worker. "Now please get back to work? I'd like to get this production line done before I leave at noon."

They looked a little disappointed, but did as they were told. Asami readjusted her falling ponytail, accidentally getting a little grease across her cheek. She tried to rub it away but only smeared it more. Sighing in annoyance, she bent down to continue her work on the engine. This was getting out of control. She thought that after the first two times the tabloids reported about their unexpected meetings and saw that nothing came from it, they would be done. She hadn't even seen him in a month. Instead, they still clung to the idea that the "broken-hearted heiress" was harboring feelings for the "dashingly handsome General of the United Forces". She had more things to worry about than who she was going to date next.

Such as the trial she had to attend that afternoon.

Her fingers slipped and she pinched her thumb between the wrench and an engine part. She hissed, snatching her hand back. This was no good. She was just getting more distracted by the minute. Pushing her sleeves up again, she pushed aside the things troubling her mind. She was serious when she said she wanted this production line done today. She had a buyer waiting for their purchase to be delivered tomorrow, and she was determined to exceed their standards. She wanted them delivered today. Luckily for her, her workers admired her determination and worked hard to help her reach her goals.

Focusing in on her task at hand, the hours slipped away. She inspected the work done by her workers, a pleased smile crossing her face when she realized that they had lived up to their promise. The production line would be finished and ready for delivery that evening. She thanked the men for their hard work and gave them the evening off for doing as she asked. They cheered and thanked her as well as they headed home. She stayed back to speak to the people in charge of the delivery before heading home herself. She really needed to get the grease off her skin before she showed up at the trial.

For the most part, she tried not to think too much about the implications of what was happening that afternoon. She tried as hard as possible to avoid the trial unless she was required to be there, and throw herself into her work to put away the confusing and troubling feelings that still swam around in her mind. She put on some nicely pressed, clean clothes and neatly pinned her hair back. When she arrived at the justice hall, reporters crammed the entrance way trying to pull a response out of her. She expertly ignored them all and kept her chin held high.

She had a seat in the front row, just across the way from where the newly re-instated chief of Police, Lin Beifong, stood with her officers. The older woman gave her a small smile of encouragement which Asami returned gratefully. She always thought that Lin was a difficult person to get to know, but after the Equalist uprising, she held a sort of soft spot for the older woman. She was actually a wonderful person once you got past all the rough and tough exterior. Already, Asami was feeling a little better with Lin there. She kept her eyes on the strong woman as her father was brought in.

She battled her desire to look over at him, if just to see how he was doing, but kept her chin defiantly turned and her eyes connected with the calming green ones of Lin. She kept Asami's gaze, as if she sensed her need to have something keeping her attention. Soon enough, the council came in, Tenzin leading the way, and the trial of Hiroshi Sato began again.

They rehashed the evidence presented and the accusations placed upon her father's head. She knew it was only for order's sake. She, and everyone else in attendance, knew what the verdict was going to be. Hiroshi's lawyer gave one last attempt to change the council's mind before they left to discuss their decision. She was struggling to keep her cool attitude and avoid her father's eyes when Iroh took a seat beside her. She hadn't even noticed him in attendance.

"It's a pleasure to see you again," he said softly. She looked up at him, relief calming her jittery nerves a bit to see his kind smile. "Although, I do wish it was over dinner again, not in a hall of justice. The seats here are not the most comfortable."

She gave him a strained smile at his joke. "Well, I am sure we would all love to be somewhere other than here if we could be." His smile fell a little bit at the edge in her voice. She looked away uncomfortably, disappointed in herself for letting her uneasiness show. He didn't comment upon it though.

"I could go for a nice warm cup of Jasmine tea after this," he said. She met his eyes again at the nostalgia in his voice. He smiled. "Care to join me? I know this great little shop."

"You know a shop?" she repeated in surprise. "In Republic City?"

"Unknown to many, I taste-test tea shops in my spare time," he said.

She gave him a disbelieving look. "I find that difficult to believe."

"Believe what you want," he said with a shrug. "But my great-uncle always spoke about how calming a well-brewed cup of tea could be during a time of great stress."

"I don't think I would have pegged you to be a tea connoisseur," she said with a lift of her lips.

"Give it a try," he suggested with a knowing smile. "You might actually like it."

The council returned with their verdict, sentencing Hiroshi Sato to seven years in prison due to the charges of assaulting multiple officers, assisting the terrorist known as Amon and several accounts of slander against the council themselves. Asami closed her eyes as Lin began to lead her father away, trying to push away his cries of "equality" and "I did it for the non-benders!". Regardless of how disappointed she was in her father, she still felt her gut wrench in sadness to watch him be taken away. She didn't realize how tightly she was clenching her hands until Iroh gently placed his warm palm atop one of them. She let a small, trembling breath and looked up at his patient gold eyes.

"You know, tea actually sounds really nice right now," she said quietly. He gave her a smile that warmed her heart and took her to a small relatively unknown tea shop a few streets away from the main street in Republic City. They sat on well-worn chairs that were slightly too small and talked about non-consequential things while he politely ignored the few swipes at her eyes she made to hide her tears. They stayed until the sun fell, and after a while of drinking the well-brewed tea, she did come around to admit that he was right. This was the best cup of tea she had ever had.

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A/N: I'd just like to remind you guys that this is being written for the 30 Day Drabble Challenge on tumblr, so I'm actually going to try really hard to update every day. So, reviews encourage me to keep trying! Anything you can tell me will help so much, even if it's a quick "I liked it!". And as always, thank you for reading! :)